Educational Therapy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Educational Therapy is a method of working with troubled children who struggle with learning. It is a technique that combines psychoanalytic and educational insight and techniques.
Children in school can experience difficulties, which may prevent them from accessing the curriculum and managing in class. A better understanding of the complex issues underlying these problems helps teachers to find new ways of thinking about children and strategies for helping them both therapeutically and by preventing difficulties from developing.
It benefits children and young people with:-
- Learning and communication difficulties
- Poor social behaviour in school
- Poor social relationships
- The threat of school exclusion
- Children who have experienced separations, accidents, bereavement, mental or physical illness in the family, violence, sexual abuse or emotional deprivation and are unable to concentrate and learn in school.
These pupils are often identified early in their school career and given additional support to which they do not fully respond. Educational therapy can be offered as a preventive intervention at this stage.
The child or young person meets with the therapist, usually for one session a week for 50 minutes. Treatment takes place during school term time and may last for four terms or more. The use of stories, drawings, educational activities, games and play provide experiences which help the child make sense of their difficulties and gain the confidence necessary to become a learner. Regular interviews are held parents/carers and with teachers. Educational therapy can also take place in groups.
The purpose of Educational Therapy is:
- To develop a relationship which enables the child or young person to feel more settled in the classroom
- To explore and resolve the emotional difficulties which are holding back learning
- To encourage the child to make emotional and social progress.
[edit] UK Information
In the UK Educational Therapy is considered an appropriate mental health and educational provision. It may be recommended by educational psychologists at later stages of the UK Code of Practice in a Statement of Special Educational Needs. Training as an educational therapist is available to teachers and educational psychologists through a UK charity called Caspari. whose web site is http://www.caspari.org.uk.
